• Programme Management
• By Duncan Haughey

A Framework for Programme Management

Today's traditional project management methodologies and techniques do not recognise the reality of organisational structures and workplace priorities nor leverage the potential benefits that accrue from multi-skilled and multi-location teams. In business today, organisations manage multiple projects concurrently with shared or overlapping resources, often in different geographical locations. Programme management is a technique that allows organisations to run multiple related projects together to obtain significant benefits from them as a group.

Programme management is a way to control project management, which traditionally has focussed on technical delivery. A group of related projects not managed as a programme will likely run off course and fail to achieve the desired outcome. Programme management concentrates on delivering some or all of the following:

• New capabilities, products and services.
• Business plan.
• Strategic objectives.
• Change.
• Other initiatives.

Definitions of Programme Management

These four definitions of programme management all endeavour to explain clearly and concisely what is, in effect, the management of multiple projects to achieve major change and gain significant benefits within an organisation.

1. Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA)

Definition: The coordinated management of a portfolio of projects to achieve a set of business objectives.

The CCTA's Introduction to Programme Management talks about defining the long-term objectives of the organisation. Once these long-term objectives have been established the organisation identifies projects that help achieve these objectives and thinks carefully about the benefits these projects are designed to bring about. It advises that the organisation set-up assorted structures to manage the programme and keep the strategic objectives in mind. To give the organisation a chance to stop and look at what has changed, what is to change next and to compare all of that with those highly significant overall objectives the CCTA recommends achieving 'islands of stability'. Whilst on an island, the ground is firmer under foot and you are better able to take stock of the past, present and future.

2. The Programme Management Group (PMG)

Definition: The planning and monitoring of tasks and resources across a portfolio of projects.

The Programme Management Group talks about the limitations caused by methodologies incapable of being addressed by traditional project management products and techniques. The PMG have identified the types of organisation that they feel benefit from programme management and say they are those that have:

• Multiple projects happening simultaneously.
• Complex mix of uniquely highly skilled individuals.
• Geographically dispersed projects.
• Conflicting priorities and schedules for people and projects.
• Changing deadlines and objectives.
• A requirement for responding to 'what if' scenarios and requests.

Those organisations with a very stable, large, single project approach do not benefit in their opinion.

3. The Interactive Project Workout, Robert Buttrick

Definition: Directing a 'programme' of projects is a key management task, as it is this 'bundle' of projects that will take you from where you are now to your, hopefully, better future.

In his book The Interactive Project Workout, Robert Buttrick identifies three different configurations of programmes:

• Portfolio: a set of related projects aimed at meeting the business plan needs.
• Goal directed: a set of closely related projects aimed at creating a new capability.
• Heartbeat: a set of activities managed around a service delivery, for example a large IT system.

The author says that some projects are too large to manage as a 'single entity.' His concept is that the organisation structure for programmes is one of a programme manager supported by multiple project managers, all of whom have their teams.

4. Association for Project Management (APM)

Definition: Programme management is the coordinated management of related projects, which may include related business-as-usual activities that together achieve a beneficial change of a strategic nature for an organisation. What constitutes a programme will vary across industries and business sectors, but there are core programme management processes.

In his paper Understanding Programme Management, Dr Glenn Strange identifies three 'crucial sins.'

• Not having a clear understanding of the definitions and the technologies involved.
• A lack of a clear sense of direction and purpose in which the programme is aimed.
• Not having the 'baselines' clearly defined, which promotes an unstable programme from the outset.

The author says that all programmes must have a well-defined baseline from which to measure costs and benefits resulting from investment into the programme. He warns against facilitating scope creep by a lack of a clear definition.

Objectives of Programme Management

Programme management is concerned with controlling a group of related projects to achieve a defined business goal, objective or benefit. If we take one of Robert Buttrick's definitions that some projects "are simply too large to manage as a single entity," then we necessarily need to split them up into smaller manageable projects.

If the whole is too large for a single project manager to handle, several project managers must run the smaller projects. So smaller projects with multiple project managers all designed to achieve a single long-term goal, objective or benefit for the organisation are what we require.

Next, we require a programme manager to control this group and have an overall view. The programme manager is not concerned with the day-to-day running of individual projects. This work is the responsibility of the project managers. The programme manager needs to ensure that all projects are running on target and that each will achieve its overall contribution to the programme as a whole. The activities undertaken during programme management are:

• Setting the baseline.
• Agreeing on roles and responsibilities.
• Programme planning.
• Project prioritisation.
• Stakeholder communication.
• Progress reporting.
• Managing benefits.
• Quality management.
• Risk management.
• Issue management.
• Programme closure.

The Framework

As the introduction identifies, programme management is a way to control project management. A group of related projects not managed as a programme will likely run off course and fail to achieve the desired outcome. There are eight critical areas in the programme management framework:

• Vision.
• Aims and objectives.
• Scope.
• Design.
• Approach.
• Resource management.
• Responsibilities.
• Benefits realisation.

Let us take a brief look at each area in turn.

Vision is the high-level strategy or idea to drive the organisation towards a goal, benefit or other desired outcome. The vision will usually be a brief statement of intent communicated by the leadership. The vision must have a high level of sponsorship and commitment to succeed.

The aims and objectives are more detailed statements explaining what is required. This work provides a point of reference to go back to when a renewed focus is needed.

The scope gives boundaries to the programme, explaining what exactly it is that will be delivered. The scope should leave no room for doubt, and everyone should be clear about what is and is not being delivered.

Design is how the projects that make up the programme get put together. In this process, the programme manager considers which projects have dependencies on others, therefore which should come first, which can run concurrently, and those that come last.

The approach is the way the programme will be run. It depends on many factors, and it is left to the skill of the programme manager to decide the most effective way. The approach should include a communication plan and, as a minimum, should commit to regular progress reporting to stakeholders.

Resource management looks at the scheduling and allocation of resources. Short-term and longer-term views should be taken. Identifying resources and obtaining line manager commitment early on is crucial for projects that will start immediately. Required resource levels should be identified for later projects, but line manager commitment is not necessarily needed at this stage.

Responsibilities identify and allocate responsibility for each area of the programme. Every programme member must clearly understand their roles and the roles of the other team members. The programme manager's task is to ensure that this is clearly communicated and understood.

Benefits realisation is the process at the end of the programme by which the benefits identified at the beginning of the programme get measured. The programme manager's responsibility is to demonstrate to the steering committee or leadership that the desired benefits are realised. Often this will mean that the programme manager will continue to monitor a programme long after the individual projects are complete to ensure that the benefits are realised at a business level.

This framework will provide the following:

• A focus on delivering significant organisational change or benefits.
• Greater control through visibility of all projects in the programme.
• An understanding of project dependencies.
• Clearly defined roles and responsibilities.
• A single line of communication to the steering committee or sponsor.
• Optimised use of resources across projects.
• Ability to leverage economies of scale and maximise value.
• Management of risk across related projects.
• Mechanisms for measuring benefit realisation.

Within this framework, there are four stages.

The Four Stages

There are four stages in programme management:

1. Programme identification.
2. Programme planning.
3. Programme delivery.
4. Programme closure.

These stages take the programme from initiation, based on strategy and a desire for change, to the final realisation of a defined business objective or benefit.

Stage 1: Programme Identification

This stage is a high-level process where the strategy and direction of the organisation are decided. From this, the programmes required to realise these strategies are determined. A document for each programme is produced outlining the business case, alignment to strategy, scope and the expected business objective or benefits. All benefits should be graded by their importance. I suggest three grades, A, B, and C. A's are those benefits that are of the highest value. Often 20% of the programme delivers 80% of the benefits. The B's are those benefits that are seen as important but not essential. The C's are those benefits that, if not realised, will not prevent the programme from being declared a success.

The programme manager uses this grading to assess the degree of success achieved at the end of the programme.

Stage 2: Programme Planning

The planning stage is where the design of the programme takes place. In establishing the programme, the programme manager will:

• Define clear objectives.
• Agree to an approach.
• Agree on roles and responsibilities with the team.
• Set up communication channels.
• Agree on priorities of the projects that make up the programme.
• Complete project planning.

It is vital at this stage to identify adequate levels of resources for the early projects and the requirements for later projects.

Stage 3: Programme Delivery

At this stage, the individual project managers run the identified projects. The programme manager's responsibility at this stage is to monitor progress, assess risks and report progress to the steering committee or leadership. The programme manager has a view across all projects and must ensure that the programme stays aligned with the overall objectives and strategy of the organisation.

Stage 4: Programme Closure

Like projects, programmes have a finite life and are closed once they achieve their defined business objective or benefit. Before the programme is closed, the programme manager must demonstrate to the steering committee or leadership that the desired benefits have been realised, often called 'benefits realisation'. These benefits are those that were identified in the first stage, programme identification. As these have been graded, it is easy to quantify success. For example, 100% of 'A' graded benefits are delivered. As a final task, the programme manager should review the entire programme and document any lessons that have been learned that will enable future programmes to be run more effectively.

Summary

To summarise, a group of related projects not managed as a programme will likely run off course and fail to achieve the desired outcome. It is, therefore, important that programmes are run within a framework that ensures a focus on the overall strategic objectives. By applying the four stages of programme management within the framework outlined, organisations will have created an effective environment in which they can monitor and control the progress of their programmes, improving the chances of bringing them to a successful conclusion.

This article is retained for archival purposes.